Derbyshire Times news bulletin 24th March 2025

Derbyshire Times news bulletin with editor Phil Bramley

Transcript

00:00Here's today's Derbyshire Times video bulletin.

00:03The new owners of Chesterfield's oldest pub have announced its reopening date.

00:07Patrick Hopkins and Meg Hartman will welcome customers back to Ye Olde Royal Oak and the

00:12Shambles at the start of the Easter long weekend.

00:15They said,

00:16You'll be able to enjoy a tipple or two in Chesterfield's oldest pub from Friday,

00:21April 18th, just in time for the Easter bank holiday.

00:24We'll have more to say soon.

00:27Meg and Patrick are also unveiling a new sign for the pub, which celebrates the heritage

00:31of its name.

00:32The sign, which has been designed by At Little Lulu Illustration, shows the future King Charles

00:37II hiding in an oak tree to avoid capture by parliamentarian forces in 1651.

00:44The Royal Oak itself has been closed since August 2021.

00:48The half-timbered hidden gem in the town centre has operated as a pub since 1722 according

00:54to the earliest records, and the building is said to have originally been used as a

00:58rest house for the Knights Templar during the Crusades of the 12th century.

01:05Derbyshire police have hit out at drivers who ignored road closure signs after they

01:09stopped traffic to deal with an emergency incident at the weekend.

01:13Police closed off High Street at the junction of King Street and Alfredton on Saturday lunchtime

01:18to allow Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service to respond to an incident.

01:21A police spokesperson said that despite warning signs about the road closure, some motorists

01:26ignore them and still try to get through, leading to delays.

01:30They asked drivers to respect road closure signs when in place, and find alternative

01:34routes whilst emergency services respond to any incident.